Saturday, October 15, 2011

It is Almost the End of the Beginning

Tomorrow is our homestay farewell parties. On Wends. we will travel to Kampala for one week and then Rwanda for two.

Two nights ago we hung out with SIT Rwanda at a rooftop bar. I have always been told that Rwanda is the prime example of a country using aid to further a countries progress. What I have never heard is that the government is incredibly oppressive when it comes to freedom of speech. The SIT kids are not allowed to talk about the government in class, in their homestays, or anywhere... if they do, they could be kicked out of the country and SIT could never be invited back. They are not allowed to read certain articles or books. A main reason they come to Uganda is to debrief on their entire experience in Rwanda. The students told us that Tootsie and Hutu as present identities are not spoken of due to government constraints. When I am in Rwanda I will not be able to blog about certain things. The students told me that had I visited without this knowledge I probably never would have seen it. In the last election, the current government scared away the opposition.

On a different note..

Mussevini was talked about in the NYT as America's best ally in Africa. I am happy to know our best ally steals millions of dollars in aid, has committed countless war crimes, has killed up to 10 people for protesting rising prices in the past year, and has been in power for 20 years. He hates terrorists though...

On the bright side... in the beginning he did a lot for HIV/AIDS and education?